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Photo Credit: Jenn Ackerman

Nowhere Else to Go: Incarcerated Survivors with Mental Illness

July 16, 2015

11:00am-12:30pm (Pacific)

Today’s Moderator

Carolina Aparicio

Program Officer

Just Detention International

JDI’s Mission

JDI is a health and human rights organization that seeks to end sexual violence in all forms of detention.

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JDI’s Core Goals

1. To hold government officials accountable

2. To change public attitudes about sexual violence behind bars

3. To ensure survivors get the help they need

Special Thanks

This project is supported by Grant No. 2011-TA-AX-K030, awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice.

The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this webinar are those of the presenters and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.

Webinar Logistics

• Self-care

• Questions

• Archived recording

• Resources

Ask a question

here

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Agenda

I. Overview

II. Mental Illness Behind Bars

III. The Mental Health Crisis

IV. Mental Health Providers and Corrections Staff

V. What Advocates Can Do Photo Credit: today.uccon.edu

What do you hope to learn from today’s webinar?

Mental Illness Behind Bars

Linda McFarlane

Deputy Executive Director

Just Detention International

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“There’s no therapy for rape victims in prison. The prison system is incompetent to handle the mentally ill, and in fact causes the mental illness that it should be treating.”

— Scott, a survivor of sexual abuse in an Illinois prison

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention

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People with serious mental health problems are over THREE TIMES MORE LIKELY to wind up in a prison or jail than a hospital.

Source: E. Fuller Torey, M.D, et al, More Mentally Ill Persons Are in Jails and Prisons Than Hospitals: A Survey of the States, 2010. Photo Credit: Peter Thomson/La Crosse Tribune

Source: Linda Teplin et al., 2006 Photo Credit: Steve Liss, Open Society Foundation

79% of youth in the juvenile justice system have symptoms of two or more mental health disorders

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of prisoners with a severe mental illness who were abused

by another inmate were assaulted more than once.

80%

Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics. Photo Credit: Dario Pignatelli, Reuters

Julio’s Story

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What major themes stood out for you as you heard

Julio’s story?

Advocates Cheat Sheet

Respond to feelings without validating delusions

Believe the survivor, even if his/her experiences are not based in reality

Understand complex experiences

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Mental Health Crisis

Robert Dumond

Mental Health Practitioner

Consultants for Improved Human Services

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Challenge: High Rates of Mental Illness

Photo credit: Elemental Behavioral Health

Challenge: Prison as Dumping Grounds

Cook County Jail, Chicago

Riker’s Island, New York

Twin Towers Jail, Los Angeles

Challenge: Impact of Incarceration

• Overcrowding

• Violence

• Enforced solitude

• Lack of privacy

• Nothing to do

• Isolation

• Insecurity about future

• Inadequate health services

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Challenge: Stigma and Discrimination

Challenge: Limited Resources

A mentally ill prisoner at the Los Angeles County Twin Towers Jail. Photo credit: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg

The Role of Mental Health Providers

• Providing mental health care

• Creating treatment plans

• Creating discharge plans

Photo Credit: Jacob Jones, Inlander

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Challenging Work Conditions

• Understaffed and large case loads

• Inadequate training on trauma

• Limited confidentiality

Photo of Douglas Correctional Facility courtesy of SPLC

Security Staff View of

Mental Health Staff:

Different Points of View

• No respect for security

• Inmate lovers

• Not skilled enough

Mental Health Staff View

of Security Staff:

• Don’t want to work harder than they have to

• Not supportive

• Lazy and callous

What Advocates Can Do

Photo Credit: Richard Ross

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Working Together

• Understand treatment philosophy

• Recognize challenges

• Collaborate with staff

• Be sensitive about caseloads

• Ask questions

Photo Credit: Chris Huber, Rapid City Journal

Advocate Checklist

Focus on the survivor as a complete person

Allow enough time

Understand complex experiences

Believe, even if delusional

Respond to feelings Photo credit: https://youtu.be/8bi_0WAsXZM

Jamie’s Story

Photo credit: The Guardian

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Self-Care

• Maintain healthy boundaries

• Be clear about your limits

• Prepare yourself

Photo credit: Jim Young / Reuters

“Getting in contact with my advocate saved my life. She was the person who said it wasn’t my fault. That was a real turning point for me.”

— Joe Booth, member of JDI’s Survivor Council

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• Advocates Manual

• SART Toolkit

• Archived Webinars

• Technical Assistance Request Form

• PREA Resource Center: prearesourcecenter.org

Advocate Resources

Advocate Resources: www.justdetention.org/

advocate-resources

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Resource Guide for Survivors

Add your agency to JDI’s Resource Guide for Survivors of Sexual Abuse Behind Bars: bit.ly/VDap7j

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The World of Corrections (Part 2): CONversations

Date: Thursday, August 6, 2015 Time: 11am-12:30pm Pacific Registration information TBA

Upcoming Webinar

Thank you for joining us today!

Please complete a brief evaluation of today’s webinar. Your feedback is very important to us.

www.justdetention.org/en/nowhere-evaluation.aspx

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For additional information, please visit JDI’s Advocate Resource page: www.justdetention.org/advocate-resources

Direct questions to: advocate@justdetention.org

For more information about Just Detention International, visit www.justdetention.org.

Connect with JDI:

For More Information

www.facebook.com/JDIonFB

www.twitter.com/justdetention

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